Holderness Investments Co. Decreases Holdings in Corning Incorporated (NYSE:GLW)

Holderness Investments Co. cut its stake in shares of Corning Incorporated (NYSE:GLW) by 1.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 38,779 shares of the electronics maker’s stock after selling 400 shares during the period. Holderness Investments Co.’s holdings in Corning were worth $1,843,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sound Income Strategies LLC raised its stake in Corning by 76.7% during the 4th quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 523 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 227 shares during the last quarter. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Corning in the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Asset Planning Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Corning in the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Mainstream Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Corning in the 4th quarter worth $35,000. Finally, Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton increased its stake in shares of Corning by 202.4% in the 4th quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 747 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares in the last quarter. 69.80% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Corning Stock Down 0.2 %

GLW opened at $48.66 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $49.88 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $47.63. Corning Incorporated has a 52 week low of $30.72 and a 52 week high of $55.33. The company has a market capitalization of $41.68 billion, a PE ratio of 83.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62.

Corning (NYSE:GLW) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The electronics maker reported $0.57 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.56 by $0.01. Corning had a net margin of 3.86% and a return on equity of 15.10%. Analysts forecast that Corning Incorporated will post 2.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Corning Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be issued a dividend of $0.28 per share. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.30%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. Corning’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 193.10%.

Insider Activity at Corning

In related news, SVP Michael Alan Bell sold 2,209 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.87, for a total value of $110,162.83. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, COO Eric S. Musser sold 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.92, for a total transaction of $1,557,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 152,944 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,940,852.48. The trade was a 16.40 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.45% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Corning from $39.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. HSBC upgraded Corning from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $51.00 to $60.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Barclays reduced their price objective on Corning from $53.00 to $52.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. StockNews.com lowered Corning from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Bank of America increased their price target on Corning from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $54.31.

Corning Company Profile

Corning Incorporated engages in the display technologies, optical communications, environmental technologies, specialty materials, and life sciences businesses in the United States and internationally. The company's Display Technologies segment offers glass substrates for flat panel displays, including liquid crystal displays and organic light-emitting diodes that are used in televisions, notebook computers, desktop monitors, tablets, and handheld devices.